BAM to become an Official Sponsor to the Irish Open Golf Championship

BAM, Ireland’s largest public works construction company, has announced that it will become an Official Sponsor to the Irish Open Golf Championship which will take place at Fota Island Resort from June 19th – 22nd.

The presence of The European Tour’s top stars at this year’s tournament, including World Number Six and double Major Champion Rory McIlroy, is expected to deliver a significant boost to the event and the region. The Irish Open was last played in Cork in 2002 when Denmark’s Søren Hansen took the title at Fota Island and the Resort also hosted the Championship in 2001, when Colin Montgomerie won the last of his three Irish Opens. This year’s tournament is also being supported by Cork County Council, Cork City Council, Fáilte Ireland and the Kang family.

Discussing the sponsorship, Theo Cullinane, Chief Executive, BAM said: “BAM is delighted to join with Cork City and County Councils in partnering with the Irish Government and Fáilte Ireland to sponsor this fantastic sporting and tourism initiative. The Irish Open in Fota will showcase the Munster region to a worldwide audience and will be a major boost for businesses in Cork. We look forward to playing an active role in supporting what promises to be Ireland’s sporting highlight of 2014. The region is well geared to cope with the significant numbers who will attend the event, with major infrastructural projects having been completed in recent years, many of which BAM has delivered.”

Minister for Transport, Tourism & Sport Leo Varadkar said: “Golf is one of Ireland’s most important tourist activities. Around 160,000 overseas visitors take part in golf during their visit to Ireland every year, contributing €202 million to the economy. The Irish Open is a great advertisement for Irish golf, showcasing our beautiful scenery, world class courses and facilities and warm and friendly people. And this year we can look forward to watching the event at one of Ireland’s most beautiful golf courses in Fota.”

James Finnigan, Commercial Director of the Irish Open said: “The European Tour is pleased to welcome BAM into the 2014 Irish Open as one of our Official Sponsors. It is exciting news for the Irish Open to have an organisation of this quality and scale supporting our decision to bring Ireland’s National Championship to the beautiful Fota Island Resort in County Cork. On behalf of the European Tour, I would like to thank Theo Cullinane and BAM for their commitment to the Irish Open.”

Set in the heart of a picturesque island, just eight miles from Cork City, Fota Island Resort, recently purchased by the Kang family, is a unique combination of championship golf courses, a world class golf academy, luxurious 5-star hotel and spa and residential lodges. Advance tickets for the 2014 Irish Open are on sale now at www.europeantour.com/tickets <http://www.europeantour.com/tickets> or www.irishopen.ie <http://www.irishopen.ie>